contour_map.jpg (IMAGE)
Caption
Using data from the James Webb Space Telescope, astronomers have produced one of the most detailed maps to date of dark matter. By measuring how gravity from unseen matter bends the light of background galaxies, the map shows how dark matter acts as the hidden framework on which visible galaxies are built. The overlaid contours mark regions of equal dark-matter density, highlighting where this invisible matter – shown here in a blue colour – is most strongly concentrated.
Credit
Dr Gavin Leroy/COSMOS-Webb collaboration.
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